Departmental Chief Scientific Advisers

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what the resource budget allocation was for the office of his Department's chief scientific adviser in each of the last five years for which figures are available.

David Willetts: The Chief Scientific Advisor's office was established in May 2008. The resource budget allocations for the following three years were:
	
		
			  £ 
			 2008/09 200,000 
			 2009/10 80,000 
			 2010/11 176,500 
		
	
	The low figure for 2009/10 was caused by maternity leave for a Grade 7, a Senior Executive Officer joining later in year with an existing budget provision, and an Executive Officer on loan from another Government Department. These were one-off factors that did not carry over into the following financial year. Forecasts for the same period were as follows:
	
		
			  £ 
			 2008/09 173,000 
			 2009/10 158,000 
			 2010/11 192,000

Departmental Chief Scientific Advisers

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what his policy is on requiring his Department's (a) agencies and non-departmental public bodies and (b) contractors to have a written code of practice or protocol relating to the provision, conduct and quality assurance of scientific evidence and advice.

David Willetts: The information is as follows:
	(a) This Department is committed to handling science and engineering advice in accordance with the Government Chief Scientific Adviser's guidelines on the use of science and engineering advice in policy making. In addition the Government Office for Science have issued guidelines on Scientific Analysis in Policy Making which sets out the way in which all Government Departments should obtain and use scientific analysis and advice in policy making.
	(b) This Department does not require contractors to have a written code of practice or protocol for such services. The Department would seek to procure such services via a competitive process. As part of that process bidders' proposals, including their ability to provide, conduct and quality assure their work would be fully evaluated to ensure the successful bid is fit for purpose.

National Centre for Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what projects have been carried out by the National Centre for Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research on behalf of the Government since May 2010.

David Willetts: The National Centre for Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research (NC3Rs) does not undertake individual projects on behalf of the Government.
	The NC3Rs is an independent organisation which works with the scientific community to discover and promote new ways to replace, reduce and refine the use of animals. The centre was recently tasked to lead in the delivery of the Government's pledge to work to reduce animal use in scientific research. The NC3Rs strategy and work plan is approved by its independent board.
	I recently attended the launch of the NC3Rs CRACK IT initiative, the aim of which is to develop new technologies for industry with 3Rs benefits by connecting and funding scientists from academia and industry. More information can be found on the CRACK IT website:
	www.crackit.org.uk
	The event also publicised a review of the NC3Rs research portfolio ‘Research Review 2011’ describing some of the science it has funded to find new ways of replacing and reducing the use of animals in scientific procedures and improving animal welfare. The report and a list of all projects funded by the NC3Rs can be accessed on their website:
	http://www.nc3rs.org.uk
	Awards granted in 2011 can be viewed at:
	http://www.nc3rs.org.uk/news.asp?id=1558

Students: Finance

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what information his Department holds on the number of students who interrupted their studies due to illness in each of the last five years, but returned to study in the following academic year.

David Willetts: Information on students interrupting their studies due to illness and returning the following academic year is not held centrally

Housing Revenue Accounts

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assumption on the proportion of council housing stock which will be sold in future years he plans to use to calculate the adjustment of housing revenue account debt settlements to reflect changes in future income following changes to discounts on right-to-buy sales.

Andrew Stunell: holding answer 20 October 2011
	We will ensure that the changes to Right to Buy policy work alongside the devolved system of council housing finance. We will set out our proposals for doing this in due course.

Armed Forces: Uniforms

Michael Fallon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence by what date his Department estimates that all armed forces personnel, including cadets and reservists, will have been issued with the multi-terrain pattern uniform.

Peter Luff: holding answer 20 October 2011
	On current plans, all armed forces personnel who require combat clothing, including reservists, are to be issued with the new multi-terrain pattern uniform by the end of 2013.
	The issue to cadets of the multi-terrain pattern uniform is a decision for each of the services. Army Cadets have been included within the last tranche of the Army roll-out programme and it is intended to issue Royal Marine Cadets with the new uniforms as soon as is practicable after the naval core roll-out programme is complete. At this time there are no plans to issue the new uniform to Air Cadets.

Ex-servicemen: Mental Health Services

Aidan Burley: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Health on provision of facilities for retired service personnel diagnosed with mental health disorders.

Andrew Robathan: All members of the Government place great importance on mental health issues, and Defence Ministers have had several discussions on the subject with colleagues in the Health Departments and others across Government, as well as with the community and voluntary sector.
	We are also working together on the implementation of my hon. Friend the Member for South West Wiltshire (Dr Murrison)’s ‘Fighting Fit’ report on mental health services for both serving and ex-serving personnel.
	On 12 October 2011 the Minister of State, Department of Health, my right hon. Friend the Member for Chelmsford (Mr Burns), and I met Dr Clifford Stanley, the US Department of Defense Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness, as part of the US/UK Service Personnel and Veterans Task Force, which aims to deliver the best possible support for serving members of the armed forces and veterans.

Departmental Pay

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will estimate the total monetary value of London weightings and London living allowances for staff in his Department.

Tim Loughton: In the Department, the 1,336 London based staff employed at grade 6 level and below are paid on average £3,700 more per head than staff employed elsewhere. The 114 senior civil servants employed in the Department do not receive any London weighting or allowances.

Departmental Procurement

Gordon Henderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what estimate he has made of the cost of employing civil servants to undertake procurement for his Department in (a) 2008-09, (b) 2009-10 and (c) 2010-11; and what estimate he has made of the cost of (i) employing civil servants and (ii) engaging consultants to undertake procurement for his Department in 2011-12.

Tim Loughton: The costs for employing civil servants in the Commercial Group for the Department for Education to undertake procurement in 2008-09, 2009-10, 2010-11 and the estimated costs for 2011-12 are shown in the following table.
	To date we have had no contracts and no spend with consultants working specifically on procurement in the Department. We don't anticipate any spend in this financial year.
	
		
			 Costs for employing civil servants to undertake procurement 
			  £ million 
			 2008-09 13.3 
			 2009-10 15.3 
			 2010-11 10.4 
			 2011-12(1) 2.4 
			 (1) Estimated

Departmental Sick Leave

Mike Freer: To ask the Secretary of State for Education for how many days on average his Department's staff in each pay grade were absent from work as a result of ill health in 2010-11.

Tim Loughton: There were 15,086 days of absence and an average of 6.0 working days lost (AWDL) in the 12 month reporting period, ending 31 March 2011. Sickness absence data for the Department for Education is available on its website:
	http://www.education.gov.uk/aboutdfe/departmentalinformation/transparency/a00448/sickness-absence

Schools: Vocational Guidance

Julian Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what estimate he has made of the number of instances in which non-compliance by local authorities with the duty to provide careers guidance have not resulted in legal action.

Tim Loughton: holding answer 13 October 2011
	Local authorities do not have a statutory duty to provide careers guidance. They have a duty, under section 68 of the Education and Skills Act 2008, to make available services which encourage, enable or assist effective participation of young people in education or training. Local authorities may choose to fulfil this duty through the provision of careers guidance services.
	The Department for Education does not hold information on whether or not non-compliance with this duty has resulted in legal action. Any legal action would be brought against local authorities. No estimate can be given, therefore, of the number of instances in which non-compliance has or has not resulted in legal action.

Secondary Education: Admissions

Iain Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what assessment (a) his Department and (b) the Young People's Learning Agency has made of the (i) enrolment and (ii) retention of 16 year olds in full-time education in the 2011-12 academic year.

Tim Loughton: Information on 16-year-olds in full-time education for the 2011/12 academic year is not yet available.

Third Sector

Michael McCann: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what the name is of each charity and voluntary organisation Ministers in his Department have visited since May 2010.

Tim Loughton: holding answer 19 July 2011
	As at 10 October, the charities and voluntary organisations visited by Ministers from the Department for Education are listed in the following table.
	
		
			  Name of Charity and voluntary organisation visited 
			 Secretary of State for Education (Michael Gove MP) Harrow Coram 
			  Prince's Teaching Institute's summer school 
			 Minister of State for Schools (Nick Gibb MP) Prince's Teaching Institute's summer school 
			 Minister of State for Children and Families (Sarah Teather MP) Bang Edutainment 
		
	
	
		
			  St Luke's Centre 
			  Association of Chief Executives of Voluntary 
			  Organisations (ACEVO) 
			 Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Children and Families (Tim Loughton MP) The Fostering Network 
			  The Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA) 
			  Parents' Intervention Takes a Stand 
			  Young Disciples 
			  Kids' Company 
			  The Soul Project 
			  Activenture (London Youth), 
			  Harrow Coram 
			  Voice (Alliance for Child Centred Care) 
			  The Station 
			  Lives Not Knives 
			  Catch 22, 16plus Service 
			  National Society of Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) 
			  St Georges's Community Hub 
			  BAAF 
			  NCVYS 
			  The Zone, Nelson 
			  Safe Space 
			  Magic Breakfast, Leeds 
			 Minister of State for Further Education, Skills and Lifelong Learning (John Hayes MP) City and Guilds 
			  Edge Foundation 
			  German British Forum 
			  Queen Elizabeth Scholarship Trust 
			  Cadet Vocational Qualification Association 
			 Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Schools (Lord Hill of Oareford) Kennington Fairbridge

Youth Services

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what assessment he has made of variations in the extent to which local authorities have made reductions in services for young people; and if he will take steps in respect of local authorities that have significantly reduced their youth service provision.

Tim Loughton: According to the figures provided by local authorities the average planned reduction in gross spend on services for young people for 2011-12 is 25%, compared with plans for 2010-11. Figures for individual local authorities should be treated with caution because there is some evidence that local authorities have interpreted and used categories of planned expenditure in different ways. For example, 28 authorities did not include any expenditure plans for youth work and discrepancies are apparent for other youth areas such as substance misuse.
	The Government believes that the assessment of local priorities and decisions on levels of spend on services for young people are best left to local people. The Department has no current plans to intervene in respect of any local authority's services for young people. Nevertheless the Secretary of State for Education, my right hon. Friend/the right hon. Member for Surrey Heath (Michael Gove), has a broad power to issue directions to local authorities if they are failing to perform any of their functions to an adequate standard under Section 497Aof the Education Act 1996 (as applied to children's social care by the Children Act 2004). The Department will act to secure improvement where there is evidence of significant, long standing failure, or where there is evidence that a local authority has been unable to do so.

Energy: Prices

Graham Stringer: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what plans he has to support households to meet their energy bills.

Charles Hendry: holding answer 20 October 2011
	The Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, my right hon. Friend the Member for Eastleigh (Chris Huhne) chaired a consumer summit on 17 October to launch the ‘check, switch, insulate to save’ campaign and a package of measures to help consumers this winter. We are working with consumer groups, energy suppliers and the regulator Ofgem to ensure consumers can save money on their energy bills by checking on their energy deal, switching their supplier if appropriate and insulating their homes. This includes an agreement suppliers will put a prompt on energy bills informing customers how to get the lowest tariff and will write to about eight million customers to tell them what they could save by switching to direct debit. The extended carbon emissions reduction target (CERT) includes a number of changes that will encourage energy suppliers to provide insulation to off the gas grid homes.
	Officials have also been working closely with the Department for Work and Pensions developing the data matching elements of the Warm Home Discount scheme to ensure that up to 600,000 of the poorest pensioners in Great Britain receive an automatic rebate of £120 on their electricity bills this winter.

Fuels

Brian H Donohoe: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how much (a) petrol and (b) diesel fuel has been released from Government supplies in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

Charles Hendry: holding answer 19 October 2011
	The Government does not own emergency stocks of petroleum products, such as petrol or diesel fuel, that could be released in an oil supply disruption. However, as a member state of the EU and the International Energy Agency (IEA), the UK meets its international obligations to hold oil stocks by directing companies under the Energy Act 1976 to hold minimum levels of oil stocks as part of their commercial stocks. IEA member countries made available oil stocks in June 2011 in response to short term supply disruptions as a result of violence in Libya and Yemen; the UK made available some three million barrels.

Renewable Energy

Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps he is taking to support community-owned renewable energy schemes.

Gregory Barker: As a coalition, we pledged to encourage community ownership of renewable energy schemes. In pursuit of this objective my Department has:
	Developed Community Energy Online, a web portal to provide communities with a single point of contact to help communities benefit from the financial incentives in place for all who own renewable energy schemes;
	Held a summit on community energy in July in Birmingham attended by over 70 people. This summit identified a number of barriers which my Department is now seeking to address together with other government departments or through communities and local authorities; and
	Taken forward the Plan LoCaL project, a tool to support local communities developing renewable energy schemes working through the planning process. Plan LoCal has held five dissemination events around the country to local authority staff and community representatives.
	Work to address other barriers continues and closely involves the key stakeholders.

Algeria: Christianity

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he has had recent discussions with the Algerian government on the forced closure of Christian churches in that country; and if he will make a statement.

Alistair Burt: The Government raises the issue of human rights, including freedom of religion and belief, with the Government of Algeria through a variety of mechanisms, including the EU-Algeria Association Agreement, which came into force in September 2005.
	We continue to monitor religious freedom in the middle east and north African region closely and will raise this issue as part of our discussions with the Algerian Government. I myself will be meeting a delegation of Christians later this month.

Departmental Advertising

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much his Department has spent on advertising job vacancies since May 2010.

Henry Bellingham: Since May last year, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office has spent £159,739.58 on advertising job vacancies. This figure covers recruitment for UK-based members of staff only. It excludes recruitment undertaken by overseas posts advertising for local staff positions as the figures for this are not held centrally.
	All of the positions advertised during this period were approved for external recruitment as either business critical or a front line service, in accordance with the terms of the Government-wide recruitment freeze.

Uganda

Aidan Burley: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received on the (a) incidence of child sacrifice and (b) level of corruption in Uganda; and what representations his Department has made to the government of Uganda on such matters.

Henry Bellingham: I am appalled by the ongoing practice of child sacrifice, and other forms of ritual murder in Uganda and around the world, as highlighted by the Jubilee Campaign.
	According to official figures from the Ugandan Government, there were 14 cases of ritual murder last year, including nine children. In response. 43 suspects were arrested, of which 32 were charged with murder, attempted murder or other offences. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Department for International Development (DFID) continue to monitor the effectiveness of the Government of Uganda's measures to combat this appalling practice. This includes, as well as the normal criminal investigation and prosecution processes, the establishment of a ministerial task force, the setting up of child and family protection units in the police force, and by the end of this year the establishment of a national plan of action on child sacrifice.
	Furthermore, the DFID office in Uganda has supported child protection work in Uganda through UN Children's Fund, who focus on child sacrifice as part of their broader work. We are also engaged with local non government organisation who are working to raise awareness of this problem and who are campaigning for tighter regulation of so-called “traditional healers” in the country.
	We remain concerned about corruption and regularly engage the Government of Uganda on this issue. In September, The Secretary of State for International Development, my right hon. Friend the Member for Sutton Coldfield (Mr Mitchell), wrote to the Finance Minister making clear that our continued support to Uganda will depend on a shared commitment to the underlying partnership principles of our development relationship. These include promoting good governance and transparency, fighting corruption; and respecting human rights and other international obligations.
	We have expressed particular concern regarding the unaccounted funds identified in reports by Uganda's auditor general into expenditure on hosting the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting in 2007. Action taken by us thus far included cuts to UK budget support in 2009 and 2010. DFID have also provided technical assistance to the Director of Public Prosecutions and Inspector General of Government to support them in enhancing their investigative and prosecution capacity. This month, three serving Cabinet ministers have stepped down pending court proceedings over corruption charges linked to Uganda's hosting of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in 2007. They join the former vice president who is also facing charges. We are also aware of recent corruption allegations raised by Ugandan parliamentarians around oil contracts and will continue to monitor these developments closely.

Ukraine: Stray Dogs

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with the Government of the Ukraine on the treatment and disposal of stray dogs in that country; and if he will make a statement.

David Lidington: The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), has had no recent discussions with the Government of Ukraine on the treatment and disposal of stray dogs in Ukraine. Foreign and Commonwealth Office officials will make their Ukrainian counterparts aware of some public concern in the UK about the way in which stray dogs are being removed from the streets.

Blood: Donors

Paul Beresford: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  if he will require the Advisory Committee on the Safety of Blood, Tissues and Organs to conclude the review of its recommendations on the use of fresh frozen plasma using evidence from Imperial College;
	(2)  if he will publish the impact assessment on the Advisory Committee on the Safety of Blood, Tissues and Organs' recommendations of July 2009 on replacing UK derived fresh frozen plasma with imported plasma for all recipients;
	(3)  when he will decide on implementation of the recommendations of the Advisory Committee on the Safety of Blood, Tissues and Organs of July 2009 that the use of UK-derived fresh frozen plasma (FFP) should be ceased and replaced by imported FFP for all recipients.

Anne Milton: In early 2012, the Advisory Committee on the Safety of Blood, Tissues and Organs (SaBTO) plans to consider new information and analysis which has become available since it formulated its initial recommendations on fresh frozen plasma in 2009. The evidence to be considered by SaBTO includes that from the Advisory Committee on Dangerous Pathogens which takes account of evidence from Imperial College and other research groups. In the light of that evidence, SaBTO will consider whether the conclusions they reached in 2009 should be reviewed, and whether they wish to make recommendations on this matter to United Kingdom Health Ministers. Dependent on SaBTO's conclusions an impact assessment may be completed for Ministers consideration and published in due course.

Children in Care

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what support his Department provides for care leavers after they turn 18 years.

Tim Loughton: I have asked to reply.
	Local authorities have clearly defined duties and responsibilities for their care leavers. The Care Leavers (England) Regulations 2010 and guidance ‘Planning Transition for Adulthood for Care Leavers’ requires local authorities to provide young people who turn 18 with appropriate leaving care support. This includes a regularly reviewed pathway plan and the allocation of a personal adviser who will provide advice and support on a range of matters including accommodation up until the young person reaches the age of 21, or beyond if the young person is still in education.
	The revised regulations and guidance on support for care leavers are intended to bolster the quality of support, and bring consistency so that all young people receive the same opportunities to succeed as their peers.
	Key entitlements for care leavers include:
	the £2000 Higher Education Bursary for all eligible care leavers;
	a new 16-19 Bursary scheme which will begin from the start of the 2011/12 academic year. Looked after young people and care leavers are guaranteed a £1,200 bursary if they continue in full-time education;
	the provision of a personal adviser. Since April 2011 care leavers up to age 25 who return to education or training have been able to also benefit from the support of a personal adviser while they are on their agreed course; and
	provision of vacation accommodation if the young person is in higher education.

Departmental Travel

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much his Department has spent on first class travel by (a) air, (b) boat and (c) train since May 2010.

Anne Milton: The Department's travel and expenses policy complies with the principles set out in the Civil Service Management Code and is in line with the recent Treasury led review of departmental expenses policies and last year's Government Efficiency announcements.
	The Department is committed to reducing our first class travel and we have already made good progress in achieving this. There has been a significant fall in first class travel from May 2010 against costs for 2009-10 as follows:
	
		
			 £ 
			  April 2009 to March 2010 May 2010 to April 2011 May 2011 to September 2011 
			 Air 0 0 0 
			 Boat 0 0 0 
			 Rail 3,840,226.58 923,631.96 55,400.45 
		
	
	First class air travel is not allowed and all flights are expected to be economy class unless there is a business need to travel business class. All rail travel must be standard class unless there is a clear business need to travel first class.

Nurses

Lindsay Roy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has for the future role of clinical nurse specialists in the NHS.

Anne Milton: The Government recognises the important contribution made by clinical nurse specialists and the value that patients place on having their specialist expertise and support. Under our proposals for reform, providers of national health service funded care will continue to be responsible for the skill mix of their workforce and for ensuring that staff, including specialist nurses, are trained and competent in their roles. Commissioners will have the freedom to commission pathways of care designed around the patient and delivered by a multi-professional workforce which includes clinical nurse specialists.

Departmental Fines

Eilidh Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many transport-related fines his Department has settled on behalf of its staff; and at what cost in each year since 2007.

Stephen O'Brien: The Department for International Development's central records show two instances of transport related fines being paid by the Department since 2007 at a total cost of £90. In 2007-08 the cost was £30 and in 2009-10 a payment of £60 was made.

Family Intervention Programme

Ann McKechin: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland whether he has had discussions with (a) the Prime Minister and (b) other Government ministers on the formulation of the family intervention programme for families with multiple problems.

David Mundell: The programme referred to applies to England only.

Departmental Procurement

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether any socio-economic considerations are included in her Department's public procurement tenders.

Norman Baker: holding answer 10 October 2011
	The Department may take into account socio-economic considerations during procurement if and where they are relevant to the requirement, where consideration is in accordance with The Public Contracts Regulations and the European Treaty Principles of Equality of Treatment, Transparency and Freedom of Movement and where they can be applied in a proportionate, non-discriminatory manner.
	This issue has been raised frequently following the Thameslink procurement process. Under the previous Government, the Department did not include consideration of socio-economic factors in the evaluation criteria for the Thameslink Invitation to Tender. Once the Invitation to Tender had been issued, the Department could not then include new evaluation criteria as this would have been contrary to UK and EU procurement law.
	As part of the growth review, we are examining whether the UK is applying the EU procurement rules to best effect and managing procurements to maintain competitive supply chains to meet its strategic needs, cost effectively, in the long-term.

Kirkby-in-Ashfield Railway Station

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many passenger (a) arrivals and (b) departures there were at Kirkby in Ashfield railway station in each of the last five years.

Norman Baker: The Office of Rail Regulation (ORR) produces estimates for the number of passengers using stations on the rail network in Great Britain each year based on ticket sales, The estimated number of entries and exits at Kirkby in Ashfield station in each of the last five years for which figures are available are shown in the following table:
	
		
			 Estimated entries and exits at Kirkby in Ashfield railway station: 2005-06 to 2009-10 
			  Entries Exits 
			 2005-06 79,487 75,614 
			 2006-07 76,294 73,291 
			 2007-08 70,276 68,937 
			 2008-09 75,490 75,490 
			 2009-10 88,891 88,891 
		
	
	Further information about these estimates can be found in the reports on the ORR website at the following link:
	http://www.rail-reg.gov.uk/server/show/nav.1529

Railways: Overcrowding

Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if she will consider the merits of reviewing passenger overcrowding on London to Bristol sections of passenger rail services between London and South Wales.

Theresa Villiers: The Secretary of State and the Office of Rail Regulation publish statistics on passenger crowding. The most recently published statistics include passenger rail services between London, Bristol and south Wales.
	Prior to electrification, and subject to successful commercial negotiations with First Great Western, the Government expects additional carriages to be added to some high speed services on these routes, including to Bristol and south Wales.

Railways: Overcrowding

Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if she will consider the merits of introducing legislation to eradicate the incidence of passenger overcrowding and passenger standing on rail services.

Theresa Villiers: Capacity improvement is a key priority for this Government. Significant investment is being made in additional rolling stock and infrastructure works across the UK, including major schemes such as the Thameslink Project and Crossrail.
	Careful consideration is also being given to the results of consultation on a new high speed rail network.
	The eradication of all over-crowding and all standing on the UK rail network would require a vast programme of additional infrastructure construction and rolling stock procurement, which is not affordable. Alternatively, it would require all passengers to reserve a seat before travelling, which would limit journey opportunities to an inappropriate extent.

Railways: Wales

Chris Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Wales regarding the electrification of the Valleys and Cardiff Local Routes

Theresa Villiers: The Department for Transport has regular discussions at both official and ministerial level, with the Wales Office about a range of issues, including electrification of the Cardiff Valley lines. Following her appointment of 14 October 2011, the Secretary of State for Transport, my hon. Friend the Member for Putney (Justine Greening), intends to continue this dialogue.

Rolling Stock

Kwasi Kwarteng: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what future plans she has for the process of procurement of rolling stock.

Theresa Villiers: The Government's review of public procurement—part of the Government's growth review—is examining whether the UK is making best use of the application of EU procurement rules.
	The review will also consider the degree to which the Government can set out requirements and evaluation criteria with a sharper focus on the UK's strategic interest and how the Government can support businesses and ensure that when they compete for work they are doing it on an equal footing with their overseas competitors.
	The recent deferral of the issue of Invitation to Negotiate documentation for the Crossrail rolling stock and depot procurement will allow relevant conclusions from the Government's review of public procurement to be taken into account in the tender process.
	We will be considering Sir Roy McNulty's recommendations on rolling stock but start from the position that the rail industry should be best placed to lead on rolling stock cascade proposals. The Government's role is primarily focused on ensuring that these represent value-for-money.

Waterloo-Reading Railway Line

Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what plans she has to improve the condition of the Waterloo to Reading Line between Waterloo and Richmond.

Theresa Villiers: The condition of the track between Waterloo and Reading is a matter for Network Rail as owners and operators of the rail network.
	As part of the High Level Output Specification (HLOS), Stagecoach South West Trains (SSWT) and the Department are currently in discussions to augment more capacity into Waterloo stations, providing more capacity for passengers including those between Waterloo and Richmond. These discussions are subject to value for money and affordability. Assuming that a commercial agreement can be reached between the parties, we hope to make an announcement later this year.

Banks: Competition

Gordon Banks: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps are being taken to introduce more competition in the banking sector.

David Gauke: The Government are clear that more competition is needed in the UK banking sector. The Independent Commission on Banking released their final, report on 12 September 2011, including recommendations to improve competition. The Commission's report can be found at:
	http://bankingcommission.independent.gov.uk/
	The Government accept in principle the Commission's recommendations to improve competition, and will now consider the proposals in more detail.
	The Government welcome the Commission's recommendations which build on proposals put forward by the Payments Council in July this year to make it easier for personal customers, small businesses and charities to switch their bank account. The Commission's recommendations set out key requirements for the industry to meet in this important area of work. The Government are clear that the new switching proposals need to be fully implemented by September 2013 and will monitor progress closely through quarterly interim reports.
	In addition, preparations for disposals from the state-backed banks are continuing and the Financial Services Authority is continuing to improve the process for new bank authorisations.

Departmental Travel

Luciana Berger: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much his Department has spent on first class travel by (a) air, (b) boat and (c) train since May 2010.

David Gauke: Spending by Treasury Ministers and officials on first class travel between 1 May 2010 and 30 September 2011 was £905 by air and £95,532 by train. There was no first class travel by boat.
	In May 2010 the departments travel policy was revised and first class travel is now prohibited unless in exceptional circumstances:
	Where train journey is longer than three hours;
	Where there are no standard class facilities to accommodate disabled or other special needs requirements under reasonable adjustment guidelines;
	Where there are serious security concerns; and
	Where the overall cost of the first class ticket is less than the overall cheapest ticket for standard class. Evidence (such as a screen shot from the booking page) must be retained for audit purposes.

Public Sector Finance

Edward Balls: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  how illiquid assets purchased by the Government are assessed against his fiscal mandates;
	(2)  how illiquid assets purchased by the Government are included in the public finances;
	(3)  what definitions of liquid and illiquid assets his Department uses in relation to public finances.

David Gauke: The fiscal mandate and the supplementary target are assessed against aggregates from the Public Sector Finances. ONS have published an article which sets out the accounting principles for liquid and illiquid assets in the public Sector Finances in an article The Public Sector Balance Sheet which is available on their website at:
	http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/elmr/economic-and-labour-market-review/no--7july-2009/the-public-sector-balance-sheet.pdf

Stamp Duty Land Tax

Aidan Burley: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether his Department has considered the merits of extending the current stamp duty holiday for first-time buyers beyond March 2012.

David Gauke: The Chancellor announced at the Budget that the outcome of a review of the stamp duty land tax relief for first time buyers will be announced in autumn 2011.

VAT: Housing Improvement

Bill Esterson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of likely behavioural change by (a) consumers and (b) the building sector resulting from a reduction in value added tax on residential property renovation and refurbishment.

David Gauke: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 17 October 2011, Official Report, column 713W, that answer the figures quoted for the cost of reducing VAT to 5% on home improvements use the conventional assumption that there is no behavioural change as a result of the tax change. In practice, to the extent that the rate reduction from 20% to 5% was passed on to consumers, the price of home improvements would fall, demand for them would increase, and the cost of the reduction would be greater than the conventional figure given in the earlier answer, as the expenditure on reduced rate home improvements would likely be at that expense of expenditure on standard-rated goods and services.
	No estimates have been made of the behavioural changes that would be associated with a rate change of this magnitude.
	It is doubtful that there would be any significant change in compliance as a result of the rate change. Those that defraud the system typically do not limit the scope of their crime to VAT.

Departmental Allowances

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how much members of her departmental management board have claimed in expenses since May 2010.

David Jones: Since May 2010 members of the departmental management board have claimed a total of £1,670.52.
	These costs include all expenses claimed by members of the board discharging their daily departmental duties in addition to claims made by the non executive board member, primarily relating to reimbursement for travel expenses.
	Membership and terms of reference for the board can be found on our website:
	http://www.walesoffice.gov.uk/about/management-board/

Departmental Correspondence

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales whether she has received representations concerning (a) the big society bank, (b) the Work programme and (c) volunteering since June 2011; and if she will make a statement.

David Jones: On 12 September I hosted a seminar on the big society, which included a question and answer session with the chief executive of big society capital and representatives of voluntary organisations, social enterprises, private businesses and public sector organisations. Written feedback was received from a number of individuals that attended the seminar.
	Today I am attending a meeting of the Welsh Grand Committee where Welsh Members of Parliament will discuss the implications for Wales of the Work programme with the Minister for Employment, Department for Work and Pensions, my right hon. Friend the Member for Epsom and Ewell (Chris Grayling).
	No other representations have been received.

ATOS Healthcare: Manpower

Dave Watts: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many disabled people are employed as health care professionals by ATOS Healthcare to carry out work capability assessments.

Chris Grayling: Atos Healthcare hold the records of healthcare professionals who have declared a disability. This declaration is personal information that relates to a small group of individuals who are not employed by the Department. I am not therefore in a position to release the information requested.

Departmental Furniture

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much his Department spent on new furnishings in the last year.

Chris Grayling: The Department has spent the following on furniture:
	
		
			  £ million 
			 2010-11 1.096 
			 2009-10 8.0 
			 2008-09 4.3 
			 2007-08 5.0 
		
	
	The Department signed a 20-year PFI contract with Telereal Trillium in 1998 for the provision of fully fitted and serviced accommodation for which the Department pays an all inclusive unitary charge.
	The scope of the services provided by Telereal Trillium include the provision of all accommodation in over 1,000 buildings and services, which includes building maintenance, life cycle works, energy/utilities management and environment, internal reorganisation, porterage, security, health and safety, furniture and equipment, catering/security facilities and equipment, catering, waste management, internal and external cleaning, room booking service, and landscape maintenance
	This contract does not cover business driven change where specific types or brands of furniture are required because of a new business initiative. Therefore, in 2010-11, for example, when Jobcentre Plus initiated the Response to the Economic Downturn project, which converted primarily back of the house space to temporary front of the house space in order to support more jobseekers, the Department had to pay for furniture not included within the contract price.

Departmental ICT

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  how many bids he received for the tender to create the software to support the universal credit system;
	(2)  to whom his Department granted the contract to create the software to support the universal credit system; and on what basis the decision was made.

Chris Grayling: The Department is currently replacing a number of its commercial contracts to develop and maintain the applications for all the core and critical business systems as these arrangements will soon reach their natural end. These applications are used to deliver services to the public, including on-line benefit applications and job searches, as well as back-office functions. Some of these contracts will be involved in the delivery of universal credit (UC).
	In response to the Invitation to Participate In a Dialogue (ITPD) issued on 29 January 2010 the Department received 34 Bids from 10 suppliers. On 21 May 2010, six Short listed Bidders were selected. Following the completion of the Dialogue phase of the procurement the Department issued the Invitation to submit a Final Tender (ITFT) on 16 March 2011. The Department received six Bids from three Suppliers.
	Contracts have been awarded to IBM and Capgemini and DWP has extended its current contract with HP. The evaluation criteria included financial and non-financial indicators such as cost, quality and value for money.

Departmental ICT

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how the new software for universal credit is expected to interact with (a) the PAYE system and (b) other existing HM Revenue and Customs systems.

Chris Grayling: Universal credit will interact with the HMRC PAYE system for the provision of real time earnings data. DWP will notify HMRC of universal credit claimants and HMRC will provide earnings data to the DWP on a daily basis. This process will ensure claimants who are part of the PAYE system will no longer have to submit earnings information clerically, and will ensure that the right universal credit payments are made.
	The universal credit IT system will also interact with the HMRC national insurance systems to ensure DWP contributory benefits and national insurance contributions are paid correctly.

Departmental Security

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps his Department is taking to improve cyber-security in relation to his Department's estate; and if he will make a statement.

Chris Grayling: The Department routinely assesses current and future threats to its ICT systems and supporting infrastructures, and applies appropriate and proportionate security measures to counter such threats, in line with the prevailing guidance from the central security authorities, and industry best practice.
	These measures aim to protect the Department's valuable assets and information. Aside from that, it has been the policy of successive governments not to make public the details of specific improvements in security arrangements, as to do so would not be in the national interest.

Employment Schemes

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what data will be made publicly available on outcomes achieved by each of the work programme providers; and whether such outcome data will be available by (a) provider, (b) region, (c) hours worked per week by work programme client and (d) employment destinations of work programme client.

Chris Grayling: As a minimum, DWP currently expects to publish referral figures from spring 2012 and job outcome figures from autumn 2012. DWP expects to make these publicly available by various breakdowns including age; gender; ethnicity; disability; provider; local authority; parliamentary constituency; and contract package area. However, this is dependant on the availability and quality of data from the administrative systems.
	DWP does not plan to publish hours worked per week or employment destination, as the job outcome and sustainment period definitions (in employment and off benefit) do not require them to be measured.
	The exact details of what work programme national statistics we will publish will be available once we have developed more detailed requirements and are confident that the data is of sufficient quality to publish.
	An information note detailing the work programme national statistics release strategy can be found at the following website:
	http://research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/index.php?page=statistical_summaries
	Included in the note is an invitation for feedback on the type of statistics users would like to see made available for the work programme.
	As soon as we are confident we have reliable data we will pre-announce an exact release date via this website and on the UK Statistics Authority publication hub. Statistics will be published in the DWP quarterly statistical summary and via an internet based tabulation tool offering users bespoke breakdowns of the headline statistics.

Jobseeker's Allowance

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the administrative cost has been to his Department of transferring lone parents onto jobseeker's allowance or another benefit when their entitlement to income support ends according to the age of their youngest child under the previous stages of lone parent obligations in (a) November 2008, (b) October 2009 and (c) October 2010; and what the estimated cost will be to his Department of transferring lone parents onto jobseeker's allowance or another benefit when their youngest child is aged five or six from early 2012.

Chris Grayling: The lone parent obligations (LPO) policy, which changed the income support (IS) entitlement conditions so that certain lone parents can no longer claim is solely on the grounds of being a lone parent, was introduced in three stages:
	for lone parents with a youngest child aged 12 or over from 24 November 2008;
	for lone parents with a youngest child aged 10 or over from 26 October 2009; and
	for lone parents with a youngest child aged seven or over from 25 October 2010.
	Table 1 shows the total administrative costs of the first three stages of LPO combined. We have not monitored the operational administrative expenditure of each stage of LPO separately, therefore the costs are presented by financial year not by LPO delivery stages.
	
		
			 Table 1: Actual operational expenditure of the first three stages of LPO 
			 £ million 
			 2008-09 6.2 
			 2009-10 15.4 
			 2010-11 13.5 
		
	
	The June 2010 Budget announced further extension of the LPO policy, to lone parents with a youngest child aged five or over. We estimated in the recent impact assessment, ‘Conditionality Measures in the 2011 Welfare Reform Bill’, that the change will help 20,000 to 25,000 extra lone parents into work in steady state. Table 2 shows the estimated administrative costs of the extension LPO from lone parents with a youngest child aged seven or over to those with a youngest child five or over. These figures are estimated expenditure and may be subject to changes.
	
		
			 Table 2: Estimated operational expenditure of the LPO extension 
			 £ million 
			 2011-12 2.9 
			 2012-13 21.8 
			 2013-14 11.7 
			 2014-15 8.2 
		
	
	The administrative costs presented in tables 1 and 2 include the costs of additional work focused interviews, benefit administrations and IT changes.

Social Security Benefits

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether, for joint claimants of universal credit (a) personal independence payment and (b) contributory benefits will be paid to the partner who is the recipient of universal credit whether or not they are also the claimant of the personal independence payment or contributory benefit.

Chris Grayling: The Government recognises the important role that cash benefits such as disability living allowance play in supporting disabled people to overcome the inequalities they face and remain independent. That is why personal independence payment will remain outside universal credit, ensuring it is non means-tested cash benefit to assist disabled people to meet extra costs associated with disability.
	Personal independence payment will be a personal benefit paid to the disabled person or their appointee. In households where two or more claimants are entitled to personal independence payment, individuals will be able to claim the benefit in their own right.
	Contributory jobseeker's allowance and employment and support allowance will normally be payable to the claimant of those benefits. We are considering, in cases where universal credit is greater than the contributory benefit, whether we would make a single payment through the universal credit which would include any contributory benefit entitlement.

Universal Credit

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions with reference to the answer of 11 May 2011, Official Report, column 1247W, on universal credit, whether the earnings disregard rule applying to such an individual on a contributory benefit living as a couple, once universal credit is in place, would be the level applicable to a (a) single person, (b) couple and (c) lone parent (i) with and (ii) without children; whether any earnings of such an individual's partner would be offset against the earnings disregard for the contributory benefit; and whether the earnings rule for claimants of carer's allowance will be affected in the same way as for claimants of contributory benefits on the introduction of universal credit.

Chris Grayling: Entitlement to contributory benefits is assessed on an individual basis. It is intended that this will continue when universal credit is introduced. The Government intend to bring the earnings rules for contributory benefits into line with universal credit, but it is not envisaged that the earnings of the partner would be offset against contributory benefit entitlement.
	The carer's allowance earnings rule is not changing as a result of the introduction of universal credit. Current rules will remain in that the earnings limit in carers allowance means that all entitlement to that benefit is lost if earnings exceed £100 a week net of certain expenses, tax and national insurance contributions. This rule applies to the individual carers' earnings and not to the earnings of a partner.

Work Capability Assessment

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what procedures his Department requires ATOS Healthcare to follow when advising claimants of a review of their benefit case; what timescales his Department has set for each part of the process; and what records his Department holds in relation to such procedures.

Chris Grayling: Atos Healthcare do not advise claimants of a review of their benefits case. This is the role of my Department.